THE RANDOM MUSINGS OF A SOCAL GAL WHO HAPPENS TO BE AN OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE NATIVE PLANT GARDENER, OCCASIONAL BOTANIZER (WITH A SPECIAL AFFECTION FOR ALL THINGS CAMISSONIA), BIRDER, WANNABE PHOTOGRAPHER, AND FOODIE.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

My Dog is bonkers and other astute observations

Well, Hana is bonkers, but we sort of had a clue of that back in her puppyhood when we would watch her running frenetically around the house (and back then, it was a much smaller townhouse, so not much room to maneuver around in) at 50mph for no apparent reason at all.

Maybe "bonkers" is too harsh a moniker, but, if nothing else, she is certainly hyperactively energetic. That's simply not normal for an Akita though. Her predecessor, Yuki, was the epitome of calm nobility, a trademark of the breed. Hana? Not so much...

Hana has her own toy box chock full of squeaky toys that have long since had their squeekies annihilated. At 5 1/2 years old, she's no spring chicken anymore. However, she still plays with her toys with reckless abandon, usually whilst upside down, using her two front paws to throw whatever hapless stuffed critter that's within her range up in the air so she can catch it again. Wildly entertaining.

But for a dog whose ancestors were historically used to track & hunt large game (including bears) in Northern Japan, this one is beyond foo foo. Her worst transgression? She's done a number on our bamboo floor from her daily scoobydoobydoo-running in place-freakout fest greeting every time we come home from work. Ouch, ouch, and ouch! So a word of advice to those considering bamboo flooring - yes, it's beautiful & sustainable - but don't bother if you have kids that like to rollerblade in the house or ridiculously bonkers pets in the 70+ pounds weight division. There will be track marks galore. Can you imagine her back in the day with a samurai handler on the northern island of Honshu in the Akita prefecture? He'd be like, WTF?! (in Japanese, of course). Regardless, Hana is still our baby.

5/19/10 Hana with Bunny & Monkey. All three are quite discombobulated.

Town Mouse, I've had my suspicions. I think my hubby is the culprit. He always offers Hana his leftover Starbucks latte when we get home from work. She never seemed even remotely interested, but then who knows what really happens behind my back!

We're owned by one mellow, and another equivalently bonkers dog ourselves. No bamboo here. For our future kitchen remodel we've wondered if concrete floors (although hard on the feet) might be our best most durable option. The kitchen island is often a racetrack...and I can more than empathize with the scooby doo cartoon peel-outs across the floor whenever the door bell rings. Sometimes I wish I had half the energy of our youngest dog (just now 15 months old)...not to mention her enthusiasm for...well...everything! By the way, Hana looks adorable...and I love how they never look the least bit spazzy in still photographs! :P

Dear camissonia, you have a very beautiful dog! And look with the philosophy of the Japanese at your bamboo-floor: think "Wabi-Sabi" - everything changes, and that's the beauty in it - to have everything perfect is weird, not lived in. Your floor is definitely recognizable as "yours". :-) Britta

Kyna, Squeekies Annihilated does sound like a fitting name for a metal band. My sister's ex was in a metal band (of the home-grown variety) and I remember on one of our camping trips to the Western Mojave, when I excitedly pointed out a bird called the 'Loggerhead Shrike' to him that was perched on a barbed wire fence, he replied (in his, hey dude, I'm a cool sort of surfer dude-rocker dude intonation), "Hey, that would be a cool name for a band." DUDE!

I don't know how you would say WTF in Japanese, but you've got to check out the website "WTF Japan, Seriously!? Hilarious. http://www.wtfjapanseriously.com/

Clare, concrete floors sound great for a high-poochie traffic area. A friend of mine lives in a loft with concrete flooring and it actually has a really nice look and feel that surpassed my expectations for a material that would seem rather cold and industrial. And you're right - our spazzy pets always look so docile and well-behaved in photos. Such posers!

We have a bonkers rat terrier, standard size so much taller than your image of a rattie. About 40 lbs of all muscle and bone. He's my dad's dog but owns the whole family. When he was a pup my sister seriously counseled daily sedatives. He's 7 now and slightly mellower. Still he sometimes gets that frenzied energy that send him tearing round the cottage, round the flower beds, round the parked cars, round the cottage... repeat repeat repeat. I worry he's going to give himself a hernia. Smart and affectionate and now we wouldn't change him of course. Your Akita looks like an "always on" type of dog too - and has those pointy ears like our Duncan that make em look alert at all times. Fun to read about your bonkers pet!

Hi Country Mouse. I can just picture your Duncan with his crazy energy. And you're right - age does little to tame a bonkers dog's inherent need to tear around the block, or anywhere else for that matter. That's why we love them so!

Great Destinations

What's Growing in the Cottage/Herb Garden

5/16/10 Queen Anne's Lace (Daucus carota). Up to 5 ft. tall with delicate umbels of pure white flowers from spring through summer. A real butterfly magnet, I grow this biennial in the cottage garden along with Bachelor Buttons and Sweet Peas. This European wild carrot is edible (when you've got nothing better to eat) and used as an herbal remedy in Europe and Asia.

What's Growing in the Orchard

1/1/12 Moro Blood Orange (Citrus sinensis). The fruits of our Moro Blood Orange tree typically start to ripen in December. It's a gorgeous fruit, whose orange peel is often blushed with burgundy, and when fully ripe, the interior will turn a stunning dark red. Few seeds, very sweet & juicy.

10/10/10 Pineapple Guava (Feijoa sellowiana). We planted this tree in 2006, and it's finally fruiting! This South American guava is widely available in most nurseries here in SoCal and makes for a superb, smaller ornamental tree. Seems frost tolerant for a subtropical and has beautiful pink blooms in late spring. Wiki says the ripe fruits will drop...so, just waiting for the fruit to drop.

10/10/10 Arbequina Olives. Used as both a table olive & for olive oil, this variety hails from Catalonia. As of May 2012, we have 24 olive trees in varying degrees of maturity including Mission, Leccino, Manzanillo, Ascolano, Pendolino, Frantoio, Arbequina, Kalamata, Salonenque, Picholine, Aglandau, and Chemiali.

10 Longan (Dimocarpus longan). Longan or "Dragon's Eye" is another subtropical that's native to South/SE Asia (including Taiwan). As a kid, I always preferred Lychees to Longan (Lychees seemed juicier), but they're quite similar in form & taste (sweet & delish). I'll bet they taste great in a martini. We bought this tree as a 15 gallon from San Gabriel Nursery in 2006 and it's managed to survive our occasionally frosty winters here in La Cresta.